Cobalt Leaves
by ScribeOfRhapsody
Summary: One battle. One accident. One dose of poison. One friend already dead. One hope for a cure. One ticking clock.


I wrote this like six months ago. lol Figured it was maybe time to upload it.

* * *

He was shaking. It wasn't a small shiver, like one had when they got a light fever or something. It was his full body, twitching and trembling as he didn't even try to hold back his sobbing. Prompto knew he must have looked pathetic, crying his eyes out on the floor of a hospital's public restroom, but he didn't care.

It wasn't fair. Everything they'd been through, and it had ended like _that._

The mental image that was seared into his memory made him want to throw up, but somehow his ragged, hitched breathing was suppressing the urge enough to keep it at bay.

Why? Why had this happened to them? Everything had been fine. Fine until that one _stupid_ day and one freak accident.

A day that had started off so normal…

* * *

It was a morning just like a dozen they'd had before.

"Are you in need of any potions, Noct?" Ignis called as he flipped a pancake.

"Nah, thanks," Noct tossed over his shoulder from across camp as he kept his gaze on the table he was working on. "We got enough Healcasts left."

Prompto craned his neck, wanting to see more of what Noct was doing but not wanting to interrupt. That kinda seemed to happen every time Noct was working on their magic flasks. So cool. Prompto bet he could get some good shots, but he didn't, like, want to mess Noct up and blow up the whole camp.

"What _are_ we in need of, then?" Ignis somehow managed to adjust his glasses while flipping another pancake.

Noct shrugged. "Could use a couple more Venomcasts."

Prompto bounded over to one of their supply boxes that Noct had out. "Oh, dude, looks like we've only got a of couple those stinger things left."

Noct turned away from his project for the first time since starting it. "Really? Gah. Okay, what about those plant pod things that we got from that tree monster? Might be a good time to try 'em out."

"Oh, yeah, we got a bunch of those from that thing."

"Cool, bring it here, then."

And so Noct tinkered and made the new flasks, they had breakfast, and then they set out for the day.

It was a nice day – a few clouds blotting out the sun and a hint of a chill, but no rain. Perfect for the hunt they were on.

They found the targets really easily too, and got the perfect drop on them. Smoothest going hunt ever.

And then a dropship found them. And then it started to rain.

Chaos. Fricking blind _wet _chaos.

The grey coloring of the dualhorns and the MTs' armor blurred in with the wet dirt and dark clouds, leaving the MTs' glowing red eyes as the one key reminder of their positions.

Prompto spared a moment to wipe his eyes as he tried to get a lock on one of the multiple MTs that were after Noct. He couldn't _see._ What if he hit him instead?

Noct phased through their attacks, retreating through the sludge as his hand flashed with the characteristic glow of the Armiger. He hadn't called a weapon, though – he'd called a flask.

Prompto fell back, trying to get out of range. If Noct was gonna use that, he had things covered–

Crap. Oh, no. Oh, frickity freaking _crap. _

"Noct, behind you!"

Ignis' warning came a split second before Prompto's was about to, but still too late for Noct to register it and move as one of the few remaining dualhorns plowed towards him. The dualhorn didn't hit Noct. It slammed into one of the MTs, which then flew forwards a few feet and clipped Noct's arm, knocking him off balance.

"Noct!" Gladio bolted in his direction, Ignis close behind him.

It only lasted a second, but Prompto was able to spot the flicker of horror on Noct's face as the flask slipped from the tips of his fingers. Despite all the noise on the battlefield, Prompto could have sworn he heard the crystal glass of the flask shatter against the rain-slicked stones at Noct's feet. The first gust sent a chill up his spine as well as over his skin, and then a white haze of screaming wind nearly knocked him off his feet, its frigidness hardening the hairs on his arm in their raised positions.

Gladio disappeared into the winter fury, leaving Ignis' silhouette as the only thing Prompto could truly make out. Prompto could barely even feel his legs, and he sunk to the ground, instinctively rubbing his arms to the point of near rawness with the clinging ice on his fingers and gloves as he sought after even the slightest bit of warmth.

Ignis staggered back, barely keeping his own feet beneath him. His shoes crunched on the ground with every step, a thick coat of white obscuring the lenses of his glasses. "Noct! Gladio!"

Apart from the still howling, unnatural wind, the battlefield had fallen silent. Gladio and Iggy must have finished off the ones they were dealing with just before the spell hit.

"I'm here!" Gladio called, grunting right afterwards.

The air was starting to calm already, revealing Gladio's hulking frame as he clutched one arm to him. Absently, Prompto realized Gladio must have thrown that arm up to protect his face. The air was still foggy, but Prompto could still see that the arm didn't look too good.

His heart skipped a beat. Not because of Gladio – he was tough, he'd be fine – but because if Gladio was hurting that much, then…

"Noct!" Ignis called again, somehow managing to ignore his own problems enough to stumble past Gladio.

By the time Prompto followed, Ignis had already pulled a potion from the Armiger and cracked it in Noct's hand for him.

No… Not a potion, he realized, seeing the different color of the drops that had accidentally been splattered across the icy stones. It had been an elixir.

Six, Prompto was actually glad he hadn't made it over sooner. Noct didn't look _too _bad now. Just bleary eyed and cold, the tips of his bangs and eyelashes tipped white as he shivered.

"Gladio." Ignis shrugged his own jacket off, despite his own hands trembling, and laid it over Noct.

"Haven, fire – g-got it."

Prompto wasn't sure he'd ever heard Gladio stutter before. He didn't like it.

Prompto hovered. "Is there anything–"

"Yes. You recall the soup we had yesterday for lunch?" Ignis grabbed one of Noct's arms while Gladio got the other and they hauled him to his feet. "I'll need you to heat it up once we've made camp again."

"Right." Prompto nodded, swallowing his guilt. He should have double checked to make sure Noct was safe before he tried to distance himself.

He'd heat up all the soup Ignis asked him to if that would help.

* * *

A few hours later and they were mostly all back to normal. Mostly.

The three of them had changed clothes and were nursing some hot drinks as they sat around the fire. Noct, meanwhile, was bundled up under about ten blankets and was sleeping in the tent.

Ignis adjusted his glasses with a sigh. "I believe it best we turn in our hunt and head for Lestallum. A day or two under some more restful conditions will do us all well."

Gladio nodded. "That outpost isn't far. I can turn the hunt in today. That way we can head out in the morning."

"Yes, that's probably best. Prompto, you should go with him."

Prompto froze. "Um. Why?"

"Safety in numbers." Ignis glanced at the tent. "I'll look after Noct."

And so they went.

Turning in the hunt didn't take long itself, but the walk to the Regalia and the drive time made the whole thing last several hours.

By the time Prompto and Gladio returned, Noct was drearily sitting in his usual chair looking… well, kinda pathetic, actually.

The ever-so-regal Prince was slouched over a bowl of soup in his lap in front of the fire with two blankets over his shoulders. His hair was a limp mess, and his eyes were more than a little droopy. _Drowned cat _was the first comparison that came to mind.

"Noct!" Prompto sprinted over to him, nearly catching his toe on the edge of the haven. "Hey, buddy! How you feel?"

"Ike craghh," Noct said around the spoon in his mouth, his voice lacking any energy whatsoever.

"He was all right at first, but he seems with have come down with a fever in the last hour." Ignis brushed past the tent flap with Noct's pillow in hand and wedged it in between Noct's back and the chair.

Gladio snorted, reaching the haven himself. "Not surprising. Don't worry, Princess – we'll get you to a hotel tomorrow where you can sleep most of the day away."

The fact that Noct didn't even look the least bit excited was a testament to how awful he must have been feeling. "Cool."

Ignis didn't even have to insist upon an early bedtime for Noct. He crawled into the tent before any of them, and by the time they tried to settle in for the night all the blankets had been absorbed into the Royal Cocoon Burrito.

It was probably the easiest time Ignis had ever or would ever have getting Noct to bed, but getting him up that morning might have been the worst. Even with the promises of a nap in the car and a soft hotel bed for as long as he wanted, getting Noct to move out of the tent so they could pack it up was ridiculously hard, and the whole thing put Gladio in a pissy mood for the entire drive. A pissy mood that made him and Ignis butt heads about how much slack they should be cutting Noct.

So… tired and grumpy Noct, pissed off Gladio, and a very irritable Ignis.

By the time they pulled into Lestallum, Prompto was about ready to jump headfirst out of the car.

…Actually, he kind of almost did when he offered to run ahead and get them a room.

Fortunately, everyone's moods seemed to improve after they got into the room. Noct returned to his cocoon burrito, and after a few hours, Prompto offered to stay and watch him for bit while Gladio went to see Iris and Ignis got something to eat.

Noct finally woke up at about 5 p.m., groaning as soon as he was conscious.

Prompto dimmed his phone instantly, reaching for the cup of tea on the dresser. Iggy would kill him if he didn't get Noct to drink something while he was awake. "Hey, buddy. Any better?"

"Nnggh." Noct tried to bury his head under the covers. "Can you close the curtains?"

"Oh! Sure, yeah!" Prompto did so quickly before returning to his spot.

Once the room was nicely darkened, Noct's face finally appeared with a very deep grimace on it. "Six, I feel like hell… I'm never making a Venomcast with that crap again."

"That was a new Venomcast?" Prompto offered him the tea. "Wait, did you take an antidote?"

Noct nodded, making an even more unpleasant face as he sat up. "Specs gave me one yesterday. Where is he, anyway?"

Prompto shrugged. "Around. I offered to stay here while he and Gladio got food and stuff."

Noct groaned again. "Food… food would be great. Think he's close?"

Prompto grabbed his phone again. "I'll check. You want him to bring something back?"

Noct slowly drew his covers off. "Nah… Gladio's gonna be all over my ass if I don't show some effort. I think I can manage going down there myself."

"M'kay." Prompto's fingers flew over the keys as he shot a message to both Ignis and Gladio.

Noct still looked like utter garbage when they headed down, but at least he was on his feet. Until they reached the restaurant. Then he sank into the chair and dropped his head to the table.

"Good to see you too, Princess." Gladio slid a plain burger over to him.

"Buzz off," Noct mumbled.

Noct managed to eat about half his burger before flopping his head back onto his arm on the table. "You guys finish eating, it's fine."

So they did, though Ignis was sending some very sympathetic and concerned looks Noct's way periodically.

Gladio was the one who decided to try at conversation. "So, I did some checking around, and it looks like there are a few low-key hunts nearby. If we're gonna be here for a bit, we might want to consider taking a few."

"I don't see why not, so long as they're simple even for us to handle while two men short." Ignis took a bite of his salad.

"Two?" Prompto questioned around a mouthful of his grilled chicken.

Ignis swallowed. "Of course. One of us will need to stay with Noct." He shot Gladio a subtle glare, as if daring him to argue. He didn't.

"Yeah, I already made sure of that." Gladio dug a couple of folded-up flyers out of his pockets and put them on the table.

Prompto kept eating as Gladio and Ignis pushed their food aside in favor of making a plan for the hunts. Not like they need him to chip in. He'd be happy to help out by going on a hunt or staying with Noct – it was up to them. It looked like he was going to do both, given how they were talking. Ignis was insistent that they trade out and give each other time to rest if they were going to undertake multiple hunts, no matter how much Gladio wanted to do all the hunting and none of the Noct-watching.

"I'm not gonna sit around and baby him like you guys do."

"Gladio, he's ill. I'm hardly spoiling him by making sure he recovers well."

"Oh, come on, Iggy." Gladio sat back, crossing his arms. "I've seen the way you handle him when he's sick. He's tougher than you give him credit for."

"Guys…" Noct's pained and miserable tone interrupted their bickering. "Can we go back to the hotel?"

"Certainly." Ignis signaled their waiter, pulling his wallet out of his pocket.

Noct shoved himself to his feet lethargically, his palm pressed to his head as he slogged in the direction of the hotel.

Gladio stepped alongside him but didn't touch him. Prompto rolled his eyes. He kind of saw Gladio's point, but his tough love went too far sometimes in Prompto's opinion.

Prompto hovered between them and the table, not wanting to leave Ignis totally behind as he finished paying. Ignis gave the waiter a nod as he thanked him and then swiftly moved to catch up with the rest of them.

"…Noct, are you– shit! Noct?"

Prompto snapped his head around just in time to see Noct flat out collapse like a stone. It wasn't a knee buckle – it was a full-on drop, like strings-cut-on-a-puppet style. Fortunately, he'd fallen_ towards _Gladio, and Gladio managed to get a hand under his head just before it hit the ground.

"Noct!"

Prompto and Ignis both sprinted the short distance, but Ignis didn't stop normally – he dropped, skidding the last few inches to a stop across the ground on his knees. His fingers instantly sought out Noct's neck, pressing to find his pulse.

Even in his sleep, Noct was shivering faintly.

Ignis looked Gladio in the eyes. "Hotel."

"Yeah," Gladio agreed instantly, hauling Noct into his arms.

* * *

The next few hours weren't pretty.

When Noct was awake, he was vomiting or dry heaving almost constantly. When he was asleep, he was shivering, and they weren't little shivers anymore. Prompto wasn't sure exactly when they had gotten worse, but they definitely had. Noct was _way _worse off than he had been when they brought him back to the hotel.

Right now he was delirious and twitching with chattering teeth as Prompto held a cloth to his forehead.

Ignis kept sending concerned looks out from the bathroom where he was making a makeshift bed in front of the toilet so Noct wouldn't have to keep trekking across the room.

"I-Iggy…" Noct managed to get out.

Instantly, Ignis was by his side, and Prompto stepped back, giving him room. He offered Ignis the cloth, which he took and pressed back to Noct's forehead.

"I'm here, Noct," Ignis said gently. "Is there anything I can do to make you more comfortable?"

Noct's gaze was pained and watery, and it looked like it was about all he could do to stay conscious. "Could you see if my dad can come over?"

…Oh, _crap. _He was _really_ out of it.

Ignis' shoulders went rigid for just a moment. "…Certainly, Noct. I'll give him a call and see if he's available."

Noct's eyes slid closed again. "Cool. Thanks."

A few minutes later and he was asleep again.

Prompto hovered behind Ignis uncertainly. "That… can't be good."

"No, it most certainly is not." Ignis removed the cloth and his glove, placing his hand over Noct's forehead. "His fever is worse."

Prompto jumped as the door to the room was shoved open and Gladio tossed some shopping bags onto the free bed.

"Hey, how are things going?" Gladio briskly moved over to look at Noct.

Ignis stood from his kneeling position. "Well, he just requested that I get his father here, so not well."

Gladio swore.

Ignis looked thoughtful, and he licked his lips before speaking again. "I think we need to take him to the hospital."

Gladio snapped his head around to look at him. "Are you serious? Iggy, we take him to the hospital and they're gonna want medical records. If they figure out who he is and it gets back to the Niffs–"

"I know, Gladio, but I don't see another alternative." Ignis adjusted his glasses. "His fever is blazing and he's getting far too dehydrated. At the very least the hospital can get him an IV."

Gladio shook his head. "I don't like it. I think we need to check around and see if anyone knows anything about that damn tree monster he made that Venomcast from. You've given him an antidote, right?"

Ignis gave him a look so dry Prompto wouldn't have been surprised if Gladio needed water more than Noct. "Of course I gave him a bloody antidote – I did that while we were still at camp. That is what concerns me the most. His magic doesn't seem to be touching his condition."

"Well, then we should–"

Noct lurched awake, barely having enough time to turn on his side before he vomited onto the floor.

Prompto clapped a hand over his own mouth, his stomach churning as _blood _poured out of Noct's mouth.

Ignis sharply looked at Gladio.

Gladio swallowed. "Hospital. Yeah."

"Definitely the hospital!" Prompto cried.

* * *

Prompto wasn't, like, an expert on security or anything, but he was about ninety-nine-point-nine percent sure that the hospital staff knew they were pulling stuff out of their asses. The looks were enough, but then there were the questions about the records that couldn't be found, and… well… it was kind of hard to dodge around the word _magic _when they were asked to explain what happened. Getting exposed to a poisonous plant while hiking wasn't the best explanation ever when they couldn't tell why Noct didn't have any records. Something that vague was just making them seem more suspicious.

Prompto was about ready to pull his hair out. They were stuck in this stupid waiting room while Noct was in pain. Not that, like… the hospital wouldn't treat him or something just because they couldn't find him in the system, but everyone would feel better if they were with him.

He bobbed his leg up and down, trying to stay quiet as Ignis and Gladio answered the questions from the staff.

The nurse was actually starting to sound _patronizing. _"I see… and would you happen to know who his emergency contact is? Any family we could contact?"

Gladio pointed at Ignis. "Him."

It took a second for Prompto to realize that was probably legally true. With Noct's dad dead, Iggy _would_ most likely fill that step. Well… if the whole system in Insomnia existed, that was.

The nurse raised an eyebrow at Ignis. "You're family?"

"We're half-brothers."

…Well, that was, like, almost true too? They _had _been raised together.

The nurse didn't look like she was buying that. She seemed pretty ready to keep them there all night until they told the truth, but then another nurse showed up and said Noct was asking for them.

Finally. It had been way over an hour since they brought him in. Maybe two.

Prompto didn't think Noct could look much worse than he had, but apparently he was wrong. Noct was paler than ever, looking small and frail under the covers that were plied over his still shivering form.

The doctor turned to face them as they entered the room, and her face was grave. "He's requested that you three be present at all times, but try to be quiet – he needs rest."

"Have you been able to derive anything about the poison in his system?" Ignis asked, his eyes solidly on Noct.

The doctor shook her head. "We have some tests being run at the moment. I'll let you know if we find anything."

Ignis muttered a thank you to her before kneeling down at Noct's bedside.

He'd fallen back asleep already.

After a few minutes, Gladio went and hauled in some extra chairs, giving them all a place to sit. Ignis dragged his close to the bed and stayed by Noct's side.

Gladio sat over by the wall, but Prompto could see the worry in his eyes. Prompto sat awkwardly between the two, trying not to crowd either of them.

It was the middle of the night, so he wasn't surprised when he started to doze off to the rhythmic beeping of Noct's heart monitor. At one point he was conscious enough to hear Gladio say that he was going to ask around about that monster to see if anyone was familiar it.

The next time he awoke he felt no more rested than before, but he knew it had to be at least another couple hours because the sun was just peeking over the horizon, bathing the hospital room in a slight, soft pink light. Oh, and Gladio was back, looking irritated. No luck on the search, then. Prompto's heart sank a little further at that.

It looked like Noct had been awake for a while, looking even worse than ever, but at least a little more lucid. Ignis had a reassuring hand around Noct's wrist, and Prompto didn't think he'd ever seen the man so miserable.

Noct was still shivering, even with the multiple blankets covering most of his form. "Iggy… can you… get the doc?"

"Of course." Ignis turned to look at Gladio.

"On it." Gladio nodded, darting out of the room faster than he usually moved.

Ignis turned his attention back to Noct, and Prompto stood from his seat, moving over to stand at the foot of the bed. Noct's gaze flickered to him, a weak smile pulling at his lips briefly.

"What is it, Noct? Has something gotten worse?" Ignis' grip on Noct's wrist tightened a bit.

There was a very slight movement of Noct's head that Prompto took as a nod. "It's getting… hard to breathe."

Ignis' face drained of color.

Gladio came back, the doctor in tow.

"Sirs, if you'll leave the room for just a moment?" She set her chart down. "We need to run some more tests."

Yeah… their rooms really weren't meant for four dudes that were around or above six feet, even if one of them was the one in the bed.

And so the three of them reluctantly retreated to the hallway.

"There's gotta be something we can do…" Prompto mumbled.

Gladio crossed his arms with a scowl. "Not without knowing more about that damn tree monster, we can't."

"The hunters call it a Fever Bringer."

Well, that was a dumb name– wait.

Prompto snapped his head around so fast that his neck popped. What the? What was Cor doing here?

"Marshal." Ignis dipped his head in acknowledgment. "Thank you for coming."

Ohhhh, Gladio or Ignis must have called him while Prompto was passed out.

Cor nodded back, looking even more grim than his usual dour expression.

"Anything you can tell us about what we're dealing with?" Gladio asked.

"The daemon you encountered is a rare mutation of a treant. Its poison is slow acting but deadly. Many hunters have mistaken their symptoms for a regular illness until it's too late, but our antidotes usually work if used in a higher quantity than the toxin. You said you already gave him one?"

"Two," Ignis corrected. "It would appear that Noct's magic heightened the poison's toxicity and resistance to antidotes."

"So, why can't we get him to _magic heighten_ the antidote?" Prompto wondered.

Ignis shook his head. "He's far too weak for that."

"So what can we do?" Gladio's tone had an underlining edge of frustration. "There has to be some sort of cure."

"There is." Cor pulled out his phone, showing the screen to Ignis. "This is what the hunters use in the antidote for this particular poison."

Prompto leaned so he could see the picture of a weird cobalt-colored leafy flower thing that was on the phone. "Kinda pretty."

Ignis gave him a look. "It says here that it's lethal on its own."

"…Less pretty."

Cor grunted in acknowledgement. "On its own in high doses, yes, but in small amounts its toxicity can nullify that of the Fever Bringer."

"Okay, there we go! What are we waiting on? We gotta go get some!" Prompto rocked on his toes, suddenly eager to move. Noct had only been getting worse. They needed to bring that crap back ASAP.

"Agreed, but someone should stay with Noct." Ignis pushed up his glasses, and for the first time Prompto realized how awful he looked compared to normal. His hair was droopy. It was sad. "I'll remain here and–"

"I'll stay, Iggy," Gladio interrupted, crossing his arms as though he were expecting a fight.

He was probably right. It might be hard to convince Iggy to go with that. But… why would Gladio want to stay here anyway? That was pretty unlike him, and that was a total turnaround from earlier. Maybe he was just really getting worried now.

Ignis frowned, also looking surprised. "You're sure?"

"Would I have said so if I wasn't? Go. Get the plant. I'll let you know if anything changes–"

"Sir?" the nurse said, stepping out of Noct's room, addressing Ignis. "He's asking for you."

Ignis didn't have to be told twice. He was through that door so fast that Prompto could have sworn he warped.

The nurse and doctor moved out of the room, their testing materials with them. The doctor, however, hovered near the door frowning at a chart as she scribbled something down.

"Iggy…" Noct wheezed, his lungs rattling.

"I'm here." Ignis knelt down by the bed and took Noct's hand in his, a position for them that was becoming way too normal for comfort.

"M'dad?"

Prompto could hear the physical strain in Ignis' voice when he answered. "I'm afraid he's still not here yet, Noct."

Again, Prompto didn't even think it was possible for Noct to look worse at the moment, but somehow he did after that news. Tears welled in his eyes, slowly building to the point of leaking down his face. "Kay…"

Something twisted behind Ignis' eyes, and he turned to look at the doctor. "Can you do nothing more to ease his pain?"

"No," the doctor said softly, looking uncomfortable. "We gave him medication, but none of it seems to be making a difference to him."

Noct let his eyes fall shut. Good. Maybe he could sleep through some of the pain while they went and got that plant.

"Whatever measures you can take we are grateful for," Cor told the doctor. "Some of us are going to obtain a known cure for the poison he was exposed to–"

Cor was cut off by a long, solid, mechanical shriek.

Oh, Six…

"Crash cart!" the doctor bellowed.

No. No, no, nonononononono–

"I need you all out – now!" the doctor ordered.

Prompto couldn't make himself move. He could only stare as Cor hauled him back by the collar of his jacket.

Similarly, Gladio was directing Ignis, but he only needed a gentle pull on his shoulders to start moving.

The four of them were the still in the chaos as they stood outside the room.

* * *

Prompto slammed into the bathroom door, his palms stinging from the impact. He barely noticed the physical pain. He couldn't, he was too busy trying to breathe, trying to think.

This couldn't be happening. _This couldn't be happening. _

Noct couldn't be dead. He couldn't, he couldn't–

Oh, Six, Noct was dead,_ he was dead hewasdead_–

Prompto sank to his knees, curling in on himself.

He was shaking. It wasn't a small shiver, like Noct had earlier when his fever was still light or something. It was his full body, twitching and trembling as he didn't even try to hold back his sobbing. Prompto knew he must have looked pathetic, crying his eyes out on the floor of a hospital's public restroom, but he didn't care.

It wasn't fair. Everything they'd been through, and it had ended like _that._

_It wasn't fair. _

"Prompto."

Prompto's head shot up. He hadn't heard Cor open the door.

The Immortal knelt down next to him, grasping Prompto's shoulders and guiding him to his feet with a gentleness Prompto hadn't expected him to possess.

"Come. None of you should be alone."

Prompto didn't want to leave the bathroom. He didn't want to go back to where Noct's body was. But he didn't have the strength to resist Cor as they moved back out into the hallway.

Somehow, Prompto managed to find Gladio through his blurry vision. The Shield – ex-Shield? – had a glazed look in his eyes, like his thoughts were somewhere else. Prompto wished_ his_ thoughts could be somewhere else.

Prompto didn't need to look to know where Ignis was. He already knew. Ignis would be where he always was: at Noct's side. He would be right there until they moved the body.

Cor kept guiding him until they reached a seat near Gladio. Prompto sank into it without a word. Cor stepped away from him then, heading for Noct's room.

From this angle, Prompto couldn't quite see the full shape of Noct under the sheet, but he could see Ignis, glasses free with rid-rimmed eyes that somehow managed to be blank as he clutched Noct's hand that was sticking out from under the sheet.

Prompto couldn't hear Cor, but he could see him trying to coax Ignis away from the body. Ignis only shook his head, refusing to even_ look _away.

Suddenly, a different type of shiver rushed through Prompto, goosebumps spreading all over him as his instincts blared at him to_ run_ or _fight _or_ something_.

What? He usually only felt that when they were in one of those creepy daemon-infested caves or something–

Gladio's head snapped around, and he fell into his fighting stance even without his sword.

What the–

Prompto looked around, flinching back in his seat when he met a familiar pair of golden eyes.

Ardyn?

Totally gone was the Chancellor's flamboyant, flashy demeanor. He was standing deadly still before them, suddenly seeming a lot taller. "What. Happened."

The words seemed to hit Prompto with a physical thud.

"What do you care?" Gladio shot back.

"I'm not in the mood to play games, my boy." His tone was low, carrying an edge. "Where's your ward?"

Gladio stubbornly made no reply.

Ardyn's eyes flashed with rage, and Prompto thought for sure he was about to lunge and try to strangle Gladio or something when Cor stepped into the hallway, sword drawn.

"Chancellor Izunia," Cor acknowledged.

Ardyn's gaze slid past him, barely paying him any mind at all as he looked into Noct's room. He did not look happy.

"What did it?" he spat.

"Poison," Prompto choked out. What would it hurt to tell him? Not like the Empire could do any more to hurt Noct at this point.

Ardyn's gaze hardened once more, and he made for the room.

Cor stepped in his path, making it clear he wouldn't let him in before he even got close.

"Stand aside," Ardyn hissed.

Cor didn't even blink.

And then suddenly Ardyn was a lot closer to him, a trail of red magic in his wake.

What.

"I won't ask again." Ardyn's voice was a hushed growl.

Surprise was not an expression Prompto expected to see on Cor's face, like, ever, but there it was. And he sheathed his sword, stepping to the side.

Ardyn tore past him, but then there was Ignis, suddenly standing and looking ready to tackle the whole Empire solo.

Ardyn reached the end of the bed and yanked the sheet off.

"What the bloody hell do you–"

"Ignis." Cor gestured for him to stand down.

Ignis did not look like he was going to stand down, but Ardyn didn't stop, and Prompto and Gladio both drew near as he pressed his hands on Noct's forehead and over his heart.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then the lights flickered. Then the equipment shrieked and everything in the room began to shake. And then Noct's eyes snapped open, glowing vividly as he arched on the bed and sucked in a breath that seemed to go on forever.

That was as long as the energy spike lasted. The room stopped shaking, and Noct slumped back onto the bed, breathing strained but there.

He was alive.

"Noct…" Ignis rushed to his side, nearly hitting Ardyn as the Chancellor stepped back.

Noct blinked, dazed. His eyes stayed glowy and purple as they slid shut and he drifted off again.

"That magic will only continue to keep him alive for so long." Ardyn was addressing Cor specifically. "It fights to keep the toxin at bay, but eventually the power itself will burn his body out."

"T-then we have to get the cure and bring it back before that happens!" Prompto blurted out. They had time. _They had time_.

"Oh, quite so, dear boy." Ardyn looked at all of them individually. "I cannot leave his presence with him in such a delicate state – the cure will be up to you lot."

"And you expect us to leave you here alone with him?" Gladio crossed his arms.

Ardyn hit him with a deadpanned look. "Oh, what do you think I'm going to do – kill him?"

"We have another problem," Ignis spoke up, his tone steady and actually sounding like him for the first time in hours. His glasses were back in their normal place. "At this stage, the antidote might not be enough without the additional strength of magic."

Ardyn paused, then sighed deeply. "This happened because he hit himself with his own magic? Honestly… Never you mind that. It will be taken care of so long as you return with the cure."

Gladio shook his head. "Who the hell are you?"

"Someone we can trust to be on our side for the time being," Cor said.

Huh. Funny. Cor was saying they could trust Ardyn, but he was also watching him like a hawk and bluntly didn't like him. What gave?

"Time is of the essence. We move." Cor headed for the door, seeming to ignore the small crowd of doctors and nurses that had gathered there at some point.

Gladio shifted his stance to one side, not showing any signs of moving. "You guys go. I'll stay with them."

Ardyn sighed again. "My, you _are_ stubborn. You have my word no harm will come–"

"Only a few hours tops until I'm gonna need to be in one of those beds too – better to not chance me holding you guys back out there."

…Oh, no…

"Bloody hell…" Ignis muttered.

Cor's expression twisted to be even more sour. "You're poisoned as well?"

Gladio shrugged. "Startin' to feel the same symptoms, so yeah, safe to assume so."

Oh. Ohhh, that was why he'd volunteered to stay earlier, too…

"Last I checked, normal poison wasn't contagious," Cor said.

"He was the second closest to the center of the blast." Ignis pushed his glasses up. "The toxin likely took longer to penetrate his system because he was farther away than Noct and it wasn't as potent. Which means… Prompto and I likely aren't out of the woods yet either."

"Yeah, well, if you come down with it too, you've at least got more time than me, and you don't want to waste it." Gladio dragged a chair over and sat in it.

"Oh, now he's quite right there." Ardyn made a tsking noise with his tongue. "No Crystal connection to keep him alive should his heart beat its last."

"Ignis, Prompto – with me. Now," Cor ordered.

* * *

The ride there was insufferable. _Hours_ of thick, crushing silence. Even when things were bad – _especially _when things were bad – Prompto could mess with the radio or crack some jokes. Help lighten the mood.

There was no lightening the mood when Noct had just died, could die again, and Gladio wasn't far behind him.

Prompto had thought Ignis was still a sitter normally, but right now he was rigid, staring almost unblinkingly at the road ahead with a frown so deep Prompto wondered if it might reach his skull.

Meanwhile, Cor was… well, being Cor. Not much had changed there, but maybe that was just because Prompto didn't know him enough to get a read on him. Probably. After all, most people couldn't read Ignis as well as Prompto could.

Whatever their exact thoughts were, they couldn't be good. Not with the ticking clock hanging over their heads.

Annnnd it was almost nighttime again. Awesome. Because daemons were soooo what they needed. At least they had Cor if–

Prompto almost vomited his heart out with how high it leaped into his throat as Ignis hit the brakes, swerving the car to avoid the iron giant that was slowly rising from its pit in the middle of the road.

Ignis made a sound that was some kind of cross between irritation and rage as he slid out of the car and slammed the door with far more force than normal. "We haven't the _time_ for this!"

"Control your temper, Ignis." Cor already had his katana out as he headed for the iron giant. "Your King needs that level head of yours now more than ever."

"I… of course. You're right." Ignis adjusted his glasses, summoning his lance and readying it.

This was so messed up, Prompto thought as he called his gun and started firing away, not that his bullets would do much against the thick skin of the giant. Iggy was supposed to be telling them what to do. He was supposed to tell them to calm down and focus.

But… Ignis' weakness had always been and probably would always be Noct – the man who was basically his little brother. And Ignis had just seen him die.

"Focus, Prompto!" Cor snapped at him, bringing Prompto out of his daze in time to dodge back and away from the giant's sword. "You have a ranged weapon – use it as such."

"Yessir!" Prompto yelped back. Okay. Okay, okay, okay. Iron giant. What did that usually do against these guys? Other than run, because – honestly – that was what they did most of the time if they were caught out after dark.

Dark.

_Be nice to brighten things up,_ Noct's words from the past drifted through his mind.

Oh. Duh. He did the thing he always did against daemons!

Calling the type of ammo he needed, Prompto shoved it into the gun and twisted around, firing a blast of golden light into the sky that expanded once it hit its peak and hung there.

Boom. Yeah, that was it! Clear as day, and the giant didn't like it one bit.

"Well done, Prompto." Ignis – sounding more like himself, yet still distant – whirled his lance around and jumped, bringing his lance down on the monster's foot with all his force.

The daemon fell back, letting out a roar that shook the street as Ignis' lance was actually able to break its skin. Prompto grimaced, almost unable to hear his own bullets over the noise. That was probably why he didn't hear the ship approaching either.

"Magitek engine!" Ignis warned, backflipping out of the giant's range as it tried to clobber him. Cor used the distraction to slice a deep cut into its unguarded side.

Crap. Crapity crappers crap. They needed to get out of here. Even if this were an easy fight, they didn't have the time, and it didn't even have the decency to be an easy fight. Stupid Empire and their stupid ships–

Oh. Oohhh, that was no MT ship after all!

"Aranea!" Prompto cheered as she twisted in midair, driving her own lance through the giant's arm before jumping off of it.

"Evening, boys. Having fun?"

Prompto couldn't see her face, but he could hear the smirk in her voice as she summoned her lance back to hand and took position next to Ignis.

"Friend of yours?" Cor landed another hit.

Man, between him and Aranea, they'd be done in no time.

"She's proven reliable in the past," Ignis assured, giving Aranea a nod before they rushed the giant together.

The giant never stood a chance with all four of them. What took the four of them usually twenty minutes was dead in the next thirty seconds with all of them relentlessly piling on their attacks. Still, it felt like it had been forever when they were finally able to dismiss – or sheathe – their weapons.

"Let's go," Cor said without hesitation.

"Aw, leaving so soon?" Aranea had her hands on her hips. "Those two didn't even introduce us. And speaking of you two, where's Pretty Boy and Muscle Top? Don't tell me the boy band broke up."

"Apologies, Aranea, but we really must be going – Noct and Gladio aren't with us because they're currently unable to leave the hospital." Ignis had already set into a brisk walk back to the Regalia. "If we don't make haste, Noct will be dead by the time we return."

Aranea's teasing demeanor died. "What the hell happened?"

"Poison." Ignis reached for the door. "We must obtain and return with the antidote."

"My ship would make things faster."

Ignis paused. So did Cor, looking over his shoulder at Aranea with his usual stony expression.

"Where's the antidote?" Aranea pressed.

Ignis hesitated. "The Vesperpool. The northmost part."

Aranea shook her head. "You'll never make it that far and back if his time is that short. Come on, I'll give you a lift."

* * *

Prompto thought it was odd that Cor hadn't asked any more questions about who Aranea was, but, then again, Cor had never really been the chatty type. Prompto figured he was trusting in Ignis' judgement. Though, like Aranea said, they really didn't have the time for the car anyway, so maybe Cor was just seeing this as the option with the most chances of success.

"So…" Aranea pushed into the hanger area from the cockpit, heading directly for Ignis. "If this poison is so deadly, how do you plan on synthesizing a cure from this plant quick enough to save them?"

Ignis stopped his pacing, which he'd been doing since they'd first arrived onboard. "We have a plan."

"Is it a good plan?"

Ignis shifted his weight, crossing his arms. "…I said we have a plan."

Yeah… Ardyn. Who had magic because… some reason.

Aranea arched an eyebrow. "Could you use my help in the field?"

"If you're willing to lend it, there may be some daemons below to be disposed of."

Aranea shrugged. "Hey, if Pretty Boy dies, I can't get paid to follow you guys around and report on you, now can I?"

Cor tilted his head and narrowed his eyes a bit at that, but he didn't move from where he was leaning against the ship's wall.

"Miss Highwind, if you were indeed reporting on us to the Empire, I have no doubt that we would be dead or imprisoned by this point." Ignis didn't look the slightest bit fazed. "You assisted us with no prompting on a number of occasions when you could have simply left us be."

Aranea shrugged again. "Eh. Details."

Prompto could have sworn Ignis was resisting a chuckle, but the grave expression on his face returned too quickly for him to really tell. "We would very much appreciate the assistance, yes."

The ride was definitely shorter than it would have been in the car. By, like, hours. Even with the mental ticking clock that was making each second seem like an eternity, it took them less than an hour in real time to make it to the Vesperpool. An hour which had been spent in a tense silence while Aranea was in the cockpit, Cor stood again that same spot on the wall, Prompto nibbled at his fingernails, and Ignis had his eyes glued to Cor's phone as he pored over all the information the hunters had on the plant and the monster that the poison originally came from.

Still, even with the ship, apparently they weren't as close as they wanted to be.

"We're gonna have to set down here and walk the rest of the way," Aranea said with a scowl as she came back from the cockpit again. "Nowhere to get close enough to the ground further north."

"So be it." Cor finally pushed away from the wall, the first big movement he'd made since they'd gotten on board.

Ignis adjusted his glasses – something he'd done about eight billion times in the last fifteen minutes – and moved to stand next to Cor. "Our best chances of finding what we're looking for will be in the northeast area." Ignis raised his voice as the engines grew louder and the hatch started to clunk and groan as it opened.

"Then let's not delay." Cor hopped from the ship to the ground now that they were close enough.

The rest of them followed suit, having to put some distance between them and the ship before they could hear again.

"Once we've obtained this plant – its leaves are a cobalt color, so be on the lookout for that – I suggest that we place it in a spare potion bottle or flask to avoid being poisoned by _it_ on the way back." Ignis swatted a bug that tried to land on his neck, and then he grimaced at the sweat that came off on his glove.

Another time, Prompto would have snickered. Ignis really needed to lay off on the formal wear while they were in the wilderness. That coat couldn't have been great in this swampy heat.

Cor nodded, pushing aside a branch and holding it there to let the rest of them slip by since he was leading them. "The last thing we need is one of us falling ill to a secondary poison."

"Um, question." Prompto batted a bug out of his hair. He hated bugs. He really did. "What happens if we do get poisoned by this thing? How fast does it act?"

Ignis was scowling as he looked ahead of them. "Not fast enough that you won't be able to rid your body of the toxin with a simple antidote– above us!"

A cockatrice.

"Really?" Prompto whined, his stomach turning. Even with Aranea and Cor with them, they so did not need these wastes of time.

At least, again, the battle was over quickly. Cor and Aranea barely even broke a sweat. Prompto, on the other hand, was full on huffing and puffing to keep up with them once they started hiking again. But at least he wasn't the only one – Ignis was lingering a bit back too. Not that Prompto could blame him. Poor dude probably hadn't gotten any sleep at all since they brought Noct to the hospital. For all the lectures he gave the rest of them about healthy habits, he never much seemed to take his own advice.

Annnd then they had to fight some stupid bees. Seriously, had Prompto mentioned he hated bugs?

"I swear nature itself is trying to stop you boys," Aranea grumbled, apparently also getting annoyed. She looked past Prompto. "Hey, Specs! You okay there?"

Prompto glanced over his shoulder just in time to see Ignis push off a tree he'd been leaning on.

"Merely catching my breath," Ignis dismissed. "Which way from here?"

"This way." Cor was already moving at that same brisk pace again, and it made Prompto cry a little inside. He wasn't complaining. He knew they needed to save Noct. Buuut his body was protesting a lot more than his mind. Stupid thing.

"Here's the thicket." Aranea pointed at the overgrown mess ahead of them on the path.

"You sure?" Prompto squeaked. It looked awfully… foreboding.

"Yep. Don't worry, Shortcake. There's a path to follow inside, it's just a little cozy."

He hated cozy. He was supposed to shoot stuff from a distance. Cozy defied the point of his style.

But in they went. And were attacked by imps four seconds later.

"Oh, come on!" Prompto fell back, firing off a few rounds. At least they were imps and not ronins or more iron giants. The four of them could handle these easier than the other stuff tonight. Except they weren't. Because only three of them were really fighting.

It was the dagger sailing past him, completely missing any target and nailing a tree, that tipped Prompto off.

"Iggy?" he questioned, trying to cover his own ass as he sent his friend a few concerned looks.

Ignis shook his head, blinking some awareness back into dazed, glassy eyes. He summoned and hurled a lance that was way off target too, but it at least managed to hit an imp's shoulder.

Aranea and Cor noticed the situation too and quickly made their ways to Ignis' side, finishing off the pack of imps swiftly.

"Iggy?" Prompto asked again.

Ignis' eyes glazed over once more, not focusing on any of them as he shook faintly.

Oh, frickity frick frack bandersnatch.

Aranea scowled. "Specs, what the hell was–"

Ignis' knees buckled, sending him plummeting to the grass.

Cor slid through the grass to his side, checking his pulse rate before he pressed a hand over Ignis' forehead. "Elevated heart rate and fever. Prompto?"

Prompto swallowed the lump in his throat. Watching Noct die was about as worse as things could ever get, but there was a different level of horrifying at seeing composed, pristine, brilliant Ignis on the ground shivering and completely out of it.

"Um. Yeah. Yeah, he's the same as Noct was. But…"

"But?" Cor pressed.

Prompto shrugged. "It took Noct a while to get to that stage. Iggy must have known hours ago…"

Cor grunted. "Likely sometime after we left the hospital, or he would have stayed there as to not jeopardize things, just as Gladio did."

"Hold on a second here," Aranea interrupted. "Are all of you at risk of coming down with this thing?"

Prompto pointed to Cor. "He's not. I-I don't feel anything yet. I probably will later."

"Then you let us know the moment you feel something if it comes to that, am I clear?" Cor pinned him under a terrifying gaze.

"Uh, yessir!"

"And what about him?" Aranea repeated Cor's actions from moments ago, placing her hand on Ignis' forehead. "We can't drag him with us, but we can't exactly leave him here either."

Prompto licked his lips. They couldn't slow down. The best of them needed to keep going, and that sure wasn't him in this party. "I-I can stay with him. You guys go on–"

"No," Cor said flatly. "What if you start coming down sick? That will leave you both vulnerable with no line of defense."

"You know what?" Aranea stood. "You two go ahead. I know there's a haven nearby – I can get him there and keep him alive until you make it back. I'll call my men and let them know to take you wherever you need."

Cor was actually seeming to hesitate. Which was weird. But, yeah, he didn't know Aranea like they did. …Because they knew her so well. Meh. She'd proved she was on their side well enough to win Prompto's trust. Not like she had anything to get here. She could have just not helped and let them all die. That would have been less effort.

"Gosh, sounds great, Aranea! We own you one!" Prompto was already inching in the direction of the path again. Not that he wanted to leave Iggy, but they were all still kind of dying, and there were worse places for Ignis to be than stuck with freaking Aranea Highwind. …Lucky son of a bitch, even if he was poisoned.

Aranea snorted. "You owe me more than one, but don't sweat it, kid. Go find that damn cure and get your ass back in time to save your friend."

"Right!"

* * *

And so four became two. Just him and the freaking Immortal, off to pick flowers. …There was a joke in there somewhere, but Prompto was getting too panicked to think of it.

Dying. Dying. All of his friends – and probably himself – were dying.

…Was that just the night wind chilling his skin, or was the fever starting? Should he tell Cor? No, stupid, it was just nighttime in the forest. Of course it was cold, this wasn't Lestallum.

Focus. Focus. Focus on Cor's back. Steady steps. There was no fever.

…Yet.

And then Cor disappeared over the edge of a ridge. Like, he jumped off. Prompto barely hesitated, sparing a glance down at the small drop before he followed suit and jumped off.

Cor had yanked the flashlight off of his shirt and was shining it around on the ground by hand. "We're here. Start looking around."

Prompto fumbled with his own light before pulling it off his shirt and sprinting over to an area Cor wasn't already searching.

"Come on, come on," he muttered as he checked every bush and remotely looking plant thing. And… stone? Why was there stone in the middle of–

"Dude. There's a Royal Tomb here!"

"Noted for later," Cor returned.

Right. Tombs didn't help if Noct was dead.

And so they kept looking.

Where. Was. The stupid. Plant?

It was nearly impossible to see anything in this lighting. Or lack thereof. Everything looked _black._

…Except. Except that one patch of bushes over there that was a little lighter and bluer than everything else.

"Here! Here, Cor, right here!" He waved like an idiot, as if Cor would have a hard time finding the only other light in the area.

"Good work." Cor barely spared him a glance as he moved over and crouched just above the leaves of the planet. "Don't touch anything with your bare hands. I need gloves and an empty flask or potion bottle."

Oh. Right. Duh. He was the one with access to the Armiger. Even though he seemed to have to concentrate harder than normal to get what he wanted to come. He'd never tried yanking stuff out that wasn't, like… _his_ before.

Prompto quickly complied, summoning some of Gladio's rarely used gloves into Cor's hands before calling a flask. He childly wanted to throw the flask on the ground and step on the shards upon seeing it, but he refrained, opening the flask and holding it steady while Cor placed the leaves and flowers inside.

It really was a pretty plant.

Prompto had just sealed the flask shut when there was a large thud behind him. He froze. Those were footsteps. Pretty big ones.

"Treant," Cor practically spat.

Prompto swiveled around, summoning his gun–

Which… wouldn't quite solidify in his hand. The shape flickered and glowed, but it wouldn't become fully solid.

Dammit. Noct…

Cor's keen gaze flicked from his gun to the monster and back. "Prompto. On my signal, make a run for it. Get that sample back to the hospital. If anything tries to eat you, run faster."

Wait, huh? "But what about–"

"I'll finish up here and follow with another sample just in case, but you're faster. Now, be ready to go. Put all those morning runs to use!"

Prompto's bafflement about Cor knowing he used to run every morning was overridden by the treant charging them, and Prompto yelped, ducking into a roll away as he bolted. He didn't look back. Cor would be fine. Everyone else wouldn't be soon.

They were counting on him now. Just him.

He couldn't let them down.

* * *

Crap. Crap, crap, crap.

It had been a while since he'd run – really run. Yeah, they were pretty active out here in the wilderness, but, like, sprints were different. Especially when he was on low sleep and had been powerwalking across a swamp for a few hours before sprinting.

His feet struck the soft ground, sinking and almost tripping him a few times as he tried to ignore the stitch in his side. He was almost to the ship. Aranea should have called ahead and told those dudes that worked for her to listen to him…

He wheezed, a shiver passing over him.

Wait. He was running. He really couldn't have been cold right now.

…Oh, crap. It was starting.

Prompto tried to pick up his pace again.

Oh! The ship! There it was!

"'Ey, kid!" Aranea's man in the white coat called to him. "Where's the other one of you? Lady A said to expect two."

Prompto panted, slowing as he reached the ramp of the ship. "Coming… later… time… gotta hurry!"

The man blinked at him. "Roight. Inside, then!"

Prompto slumped onto the floor against a wall inside, clutching the flask to his chest. He might be able to stick it in the Armiger, but he didn't want to risk not being able to get it back out again.

He held out his free hand, trying to summon his gun again. It made it to being even less solid than before.

A noise of dismay made its way out of Prompto's throat as he shivered.

"Just a little longer, buddy…" he murmured.

* * *

Even with the ship, the Vesperpool was still a ways away from Lestallum, and Prompto kept feeling worse and worse as time crawled by. One of Aranea's men took enough pity on him to shed his own coat and drop it over Prompto's shoulders after he'd been shivering so long. He was really hoping he didn't get to the throwing up stage before they got to the hospital.

He wasn't sure when he started to nod off, but he awoke when the ship jerked, sending the flask from his loose grip.

"No!"

Those flasks were meant to be broken. If that hit the floor too hard–

The flask struck the floor of the ship a few feet away, breaking the casing with a sharp _crack._ Prompto scrambled after it, instinctively snatching the shattering mess.

With his fevered brain and the sting of the glass in his palm, it took him a moment to remember why the leaves and flowers touching his skin was a bad thing. And then he realized just how bad that was when he also realized those leaves and flowers were totally pressing into the cuts he'd just gotten on his hand.

…Wow. Great. Now he was totally double poisoned.

"Sorry for the bumpy ride!" one of Aranea's guys called back. "We're landing!"

Thank the Six. He could make it. Surely he could make it, right? It was just across the city. Then he could get Noct healed, and Gladio, and himself, and then take some to Iggy. Not much longer at all.

Only he had no idea what the side effects of _this _plant were. He couldn't pull anything from the Armiger right now, so he was stuck without an antidote until he got to the hospital.

Prompto stumbled to his feet, clinging to the side of the ship with his still okay hand until the ramp began to lower. He almost fell off the end of the ramp as he staggered over the edge of it before it had fully touched the ground.

Lestallum wavered before him, the cuts on his hand beginning to burn and itch.

Prompto hadn't really thought about what it would be like to be a drunk merman before, but he was pretty sure this was an accurate comparison. He could have sworn he was underwater, with the buildings wobbling in front of him and his feet dragging like the mud of the Vesperpool was still clinging to his boots.

This… this was the right road, wasn't it?

Prompto coughed. It was… it was getting a bit harder to breathe than before, and not just because he was exhausted. His throat was beginning to feel swollen.

Blurred as his thoughts and vision were, he wasn't sure how he'd known which way to go, but he snapped out of his daze when his palms hit the door to the hospital.

Six, everything was so bright and loud!

"Sir? Sir! Do you need help? Sir!"

Prompto stumbled past the nurse, crashing into the wall and batting his hand around until he managed to hit the elevator button there.

The nurse was calling security of some kind, but the elevator was already there. Prompto was pretty glad about that. He wasn't sure he could have kept standing for much longer.

The elevator had a handlebar in it, and he clung to that with his free hand, wheezing.

His skin itched. _It itched it itched it itched._

…And the walls were totally moving around him. That probably wasn't good.

Prompto sluggishly tried to look at the plant in his hand. Stupid fingerless gloves. This wouldn't have happened if he'd just had normal ones–

His gloves. Where the hell were his gloves? The plant was there, but his hands and arms were bare, and his code mark… his code mark was on his skin no matter which way he turned his arm. It was bold and glaring, impossible not to notice.

He couldn't go out there like this–

No… he had to. Even if Noct saw and hated him, that was better than Noct and the guys being _dead. _

_Ding._

There was it. The right floor. One more push.

The doctor from before was just outside Noct's room.

"Oh, you're ba– what is wrong with you?"

"Move," Prompto garbled out around his thick tongue.

But her presence was enough. He tried to slow as to not plow into her, and he stumbled over his own feet, bashing his knee into the ground as he fell on his face.

He couldn't…

He had to…

Get up…

Someone grabbed his shoulder, turning him over.

Someone who was a big purple blob.

Ardyn. It was Ardyn. He couldn't believe he was so happy to see him, but he was.

"C-cure," Prompto slurred, his fingers twitching around the plant in his hand.

And then purple turned black.

* * *

"…ompto! Shit, he's still…"

"…needn't worry. The boy will…"

"…did good, kid. Noct's gonna…"

"…did get yourself into a mess, didn't you…"

"Come on, kid. You're strong. You got this."

Prompto groaned involuntarily the second he was even remotely conscious.

Everything. Hurt.

"Prompto?" There was a hand on his arm.

Prompto cracked an eye and then snapped it shut again with a louder groan.

"Hold on, I'll turn down the lights." The hand disappeared. "There. That better for you?"

Prompto tried again – albeit reluctantly. His head still pounded and the light hurt it more, but it wasn't as bad as before.

"Gladio?" he mumbled, his tongue feeling thick enough that it seemed to fill up his entire mouth.

The hand was back on his arm. "Yeah, it's me, Prompto."

Wow. Cool. He was okay, then. But what about… "Noct?"

"He's alive, thanks to you and… well, whatever the hell Ardyn did to him. Still out of it since he had things the worst out of the three of us. I only just woke a while ago myself."

Prompto grunted back just to show that he was listening. He didn't have the energy to do much else.

"I talked to Cor. He was already halfway here on Aranea's airship, so they're gonna come get the cure from us and take it to Ignis. I'm still not comfortable with leaving the Chancellor around Noct alone, so I'll probably stay here. No way Noct's going to be ready to travel any time soon."

Prompto grunted again, willing the lines on the ceiling to stop swaying. They only did when he closed his eyes again, giving up the struggle and letting himself drift back off.

"–don't give a damn, you asshole! You promised us a cure!"

Prompto jerked awake, blinking several times before he remembered where he was. Gladio was yelling in the next room. He strained to hear Ardyn's reply as the Chancellor's creepy smooth voice leaked through the wall.

"–believed the agreement was that I heal His Majesty here. Healing you and your young energetic friend was extra in itself. I see no reason I should be obligated to produce even more of your cure."

Prompto jolted fully awake at those words, dragging himself out of the hospital bed he was in. Weird, they hadn't even changed his clothes. Probably due to Ardyn and not the hospital. He was the one who'd had to cure him, after all.

He double checked his wrist, finding his armband perfectly in place. So that had just been a hallucination playing on his fears… That was good, he guessed. Better than it being reality.

"Oh, so now you don't care if we die or not? After all these run-ins?" Noct sounded exhausted and irritated, but Prompto had never been so glad to hear his voice. Irritated and weak was a lot better than dead.

"Enough, Chancellor." Cor's firm voice cut in. "You need him. You know that as well as I do. Cease this act and give us the cure before his condition goes beyond reversal."

Prompto wobbled over to the door, using the wall to help himself stay up right as he moved out into the hall and around the corner to the source of the voices.

Noct's room. Right. That's where everyone else was.

Ardyn chuckled. "How does this sound, hmm? I will cure your dear advisor and friend on one condition."

"Yeah? And what condition is that?" Gladio demanded.

"Ask me to."

Huh? _That _was his condition? Prompto peeked into the room, finding Ardyn and Cor and Gladio standing around Noct, who was still sitting in bed and looking overly pale. His eyes still carried a dusty pink that had to be the Crystal's magic. That was still pretty unnerving. Usually that went away really quickly. It didn't just stay there.

"Ask you?" Gladio's eyebrows shot up. "Right. Sure. Fine. Will you–"

"Ah." Ardyn held up a hand. "Not you." The hand curled and he pointed at Noct. "Him."

Noct blinked a few times, still seeming dazed. "What?"

"Oh, you heard me, Your Highness." Ardyn's tone was carrying an even creepier edge than normal. He stepped closer to Noct, leaning in. "If you want to save your oldest friend, _ask me._"

Confusion and exhaustion warring on his face, Noct kept blinking for a few seconds. "…Fine. Will you help us cure Ignis?"

"Ah-ah-ah." Ardyn wagged his finger. "Not like that. Goodness, didn't your father teach you manners? Ask politely."

Noct's glare narrowed, his glowing slitted eyes and pale skin blending into a pretty terrifying sight. Prompto didn't blame him. It was not cool to mention someone's recently dead dad like that.

"Please," Noct said through pressed-together teeth. "Will you _please_ help us save Ignis' life?"

A dark grin spread across Ardyn's face as he plucked his hat from his head and held it to his chest. "Why, it would be my pleasure to help such a soul in need, Your Majesty." He bowed, then produced a small vial with his free hand, holding it out to Cor while still staring at Noct.

Cor took the vial with a scowl.

"Bastard," Gladio muttered.

Ardyn replaced his hat on his head. "And with that, I believe I'll take my leave." He pivoted on one foot sharply, strolling out of the room and tossing Prompto a creepy smile as he walked by.

"Hey!" Noct shoved his covers off and staggered after Ardyn, batting Gladio away when he tried to help. Somehow he kept his feet beneath him and made it to the hallway. Prompto resisted reaching out to steady him. "How do we know this is gonna work?"

"Oh, I assure you, it will work." Ardyn didn't turn around. "As it's been pointed out, Noct, if I wanted you lot dead… you would be." On his last words, Ardyn reached a hand into the air, snapping his fingers.

Noct's legs caved, sending him to the floor with a gasp.

"Noct!"

Prompto and Gladio were both at his side instantly, propping him up in a seated position. He groaned tiredly, and Prompto couldn't help but notice that the glow in his eyes was finally gone.

Prompto was no expert on the Crystal, but he was pretty sure whatever had just happened was way over his head.

"Okay." The doctor from before was suddenly there. She'd probably been hovering and she was finally helping out again now that Ardyn was gone. "I don't know what the hell is going on here, but I do know you need to get back in bed. Now."

* * *

Prompto couldn't put into words how weird and groggy he felt, but he hated sitting still, so he'd volunteered to go back with Cor and take the cure to Ignis while Gladio stayed with Noct. There was so much to think about, but all of it was churning in his head and not making any sense, so he was trying to stop bothering with it for a bit.

He probably shouldn't have gone with Cor. His pace uphill was really lacking. At least it wasn't night anymore, though, so there were no daemons around. That made things a lot easier.

He just hoped Iggy was okay.

"Prompto, pick up the pace," Cor ordered, but he didn't sound harsh.

They weren't far anyway. Prompto wasn't too good with directions, especially when it had been night before, but he could hear that water fountain that was supposed to be around, so he knew they were close.

"Highwind?" Cor called after a few more minutes.

"Here!" was the almost instantaneous reply.

Prompto felt a surge of energy from somewhere that allowed him to catch up with and then pass Cor as they broke into the clearing near the waterfall.

The haven wasn't hard to spot, and neither were the people on it.

Prompto's grin at seeing them died as quickly as it had come when he really took in the sight. Again, Noct being, well, dead was as horrible as things got, but this was ranking up there with it. Noct had been pale, but he was naturally vampiric anyway. Seeing Ignis sheet white with matted hair and drenched in sweat as he shivered and twitched on the ground was yet another level of disturbing.

"Thank the Six." Aranea barely took her eyes off of Ignis, who was shirtless but had his shirt, jacket, and Aranea's sash thing piled on top of him like blankets. She was pressing some damp, ripped cloth to his forehead. "I wasn't sure how much longer he had."

Cor moved over, crouching beside Ignis and checking his pulse. "Not long at all, given the strength of his symptoms." He pulled the vial from his pocket. "He needs to drink this."

Aranea made a noise. "Oh, that all? It was hard enough to get him to do anything when he was conscious – most stubborn patient I've ever had." She tapped his cheek. "Specs. Hey, Specs!"

Ignis' eyes opened weakly after a few moments, though he looked anything but coherent.

Aranea slid a hand behind his neck, raising his head a bit. "Okay, Specs, I need to you drink this for me. Think you can handle that?"

A cough was his only reply.

"I'll take that as a yes because you don't have a choice anyway. Open up." She coaxed his jaw open and took the offered vial from Cor, dumping the contents into Ignis' mouth before forcing his mouth shut again and making him swallow it.

He coughed more, harder this time, but the fit subsided as Aranea laid his head back down. His eyes drifted shut again.

"He's one resilient bastard, I'll give him that." She laid a hand on his forehead. "Hell of a fighter."

Cor grunted. "The King only allowed the best in his son's Crownsguard."

The best? Prompto's heart skipped a beat. Did that mean… Had Noct's dad thought Prompto was…

Prompto plopped onto the ground, smiling faintly as true relief washed over him for the first time since this whole pile of crap started.

They'd done it. Even after Noct had _died,_ they'd all eventually pulled through. They were all going to be okay.

It was over. _It was over._

* * *

The next few days were made up of… honestly just a lot of naps. Given how much they all needed the rest, they'd splurged and rented a hotel room. Cor had even pitched in to help them out.

And so they slept, putting Noct's usual napping abilities to shame. Except… Noct actually seemed to be sleeping the least. Prompto lost count of how many times Noct had woken up with a gasp the last few days and then left his bed to go to the balcony or the bathroom.

Prompto knew it would only be a matter of time before Ignis tried to do something about that, and, sure enough, he was right. On the third night of their stay-in-and-rest marathon, Noct happened to startle awake and head for the balcony while the rest of them were also awake. Ignis glanced up from the jacket he was sewing and over the rims of his glasses. That was all it took to get all three of them up.

They hovered inside for a minute while Ignis went out first.

"Noct?" Ignis inquired softly. "Would you like to share what's troubling you? It's unlike you to keep turning down napping prospects."

Noct was quiet for a moment, staring down over the darkened streets of Lestallum.

"I… Um." His fingers curled around the railing. "I felt it. Dying, I mean. I remember it."

Ignis sucked in a sharp breath as Gladio muttered a low swear.

Noct still didn't look back at them. "I keep… dreaming about it. Every time I sleep, I can't get rid of the feeling that I'm not gonna wake up again."

"Shit, Noct." Gladio stepped out onto the balcony, setting a hand on Noct's shoulder. "Look, I know we can't really help you with that, but you need anything, you let us know, okay? We've got your back."

"Quite right." Ignis took his position on Noct's other side.

"Yeah, what they said." Prompto bumped Noct's back with a light punch.

"Thanks, guys." Noct's shoulders loosened a bit. "For everything, I mean." He tilted his head suddenly then. "Hey, is that Aranea?"

The topic change wasn't exactly subtle, but Prompto looked all the same, craning his neck to see the streets. "Hey, it is!"

"She really saved our hides, didn't she?" Noct asked.

"Yep," Prompto reaffirmed. "And in a way less creepy way than Ardyn."

They still hadn't talked about that. Prompto wondered if anyone knew how Ardyn had resurrected Noct, or if that was just something no one was going to explain. Could it be explained? Not by them, for sure, and Cor hadn't seemed to want to share before he took off.

Noct hummed. "Specs, how's our gil?"

"Well enough after the Marshal's donation. Why?"

Noctis shrugged out from Gladio's hold, cupping his hands around his mouth. "Hey! Aranea!"

Standing on the tips of his toes, Prompto could see Aranea swing around to face them, gaze finding them after a few moments. "Hey, Pretty Boy. Good to see you all looking less dead."

"Yeah," Noct agreed. "You wanna join us for dinner? Least we can do."

Aranea looked as though she were debating it. "Where?"

Noct shrugged. "Your choice."

"All right." Aranea crossed her arms. "I'll wait here, then. Chop chop."

The four of them headed back inside, moving off to their respective parts of the room to get what they needed. Like shoes. Shoes were a good thing.

"So, Iggy…" Noct grinned as he started tying his boot. "Heard you and her spent the night together at a haven."

Ignis rolled his eyes, but his face still lit up with a dusty pink. "She cared for me while I was delirious and fever laden, Noct. Hardly the romantic setting that your tone is implying."

"Uh-huh."

"Noct…"

"Hey, I can say for a fact that she made it to second base with him," Prompto said brightly.

"Prompto!" Ignis' cheeks heated further. "That was not what was taking place, and you are well aware of it!"

Gladio laughed loudly. "Geez, Iggy, didn't realize we were crashing your date here. Maybe we better stay back."

"Gladio–"

Noct let out a bunch of fake coughs, dramatically pressing his arm to his head. "Oh, no. I feel sick again. Better stay here."

"Oh, gravity is increasing!" Prompto flopped onto the floor. "I can't go on!" So what if he totally liked Aranea? Teasing Ignis was too much fun. Plus, he hadn't forgotten about Cindy.

Ignis kneaded his forehead. "You lot are insufferable."

"Damn straight."

"Proud of it!"

"Admit it, Iggy." Gladio shed his shirt, dramatically flexing his muscles before he shrugged on his jacket instead. "You wouldn't have us any other way."

"_I _sure wouldn't," Noct said, his voice less playful than a moment ago.

"…Indeed." Ignis passed Prompto, offering a hand down to him. "Astrals save me, I certainly wouldn't either."

"Same," Prompto agreed.

He'd never taken his friends for granted before, but this had all reinforced that very clearly.

Despite the magic and the training… they were delicate. Not just Prompto, like he'd always thought. All of them. But they would fight their hardest – daemons or poison be damned – anyway.

They would keep walking tall.


End file.
